


Band Candy

by ThisPeep



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: M/M, its only underage because non straight relationships, used to have a different consent age then straight ones
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-16
Updated: 2014-10-30
Packaged: 2018-02-13 09:42:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2146026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThisPeep/pseuds/ThisPeep
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Everyone knows Mr. Giles as the middle-aged father figure, but how about back when he was a young man? He was a bit of a troublemaker back then, so how did he turn into the sensible librarian we all know and love?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

It was my town.

Nobody said it was my town, it’s not as though I got handed the keys to the shiny, shitty city or anything, but everyone knew. You can’t take me down, can’t arrest me. This place- my large, perfectly memorized hometown- was a playground. Everything and every _one_ in it was just another furnishing, another toy to be messed with. Some more interesting then others, some with the consciousness to realize they were helpless against the monsters that came in the night, but in the end they were all just things to play with until I got bored.

You see; I wasn’t always a good man. I didn’t always keep away from the dark arts, use my magic for good, nor obey the laws. I did plenty of stupid, reckless things that almost got me killed. Some things that got other people actually killed. 

Basically, I was a teenager. With access to some very powerful magic, of course.

I’m getting ahead of myself. And this story isn’t _all_ sadness and death, which I realize I’ve made it seem like. Some of it is, perhaps parts are a bit intense, and no life is completely void of sadness. Oh, also for anyone reading who may be opposed to this sort of thing, parts of my story are fairly mature. I wasn’t a virgin by a long shot at the point this story begins, and by the end I was possibly even less so.

Parts are sweet, there is most likely going to be some talking back, and a lot of laws will get broken. Repeatedly.

It takes a while for me to appear, but I am in the story. I’ll be the rude, suspicious one. But first, you’re going to start from someone else’s point of view.


	2. Chapter 2

First day. He used to be a cop somewhere else, so it wasn’t _technically_ his very first day, but it was his first day in this specific town. On his first day he was retaught rules, told some new ones, and a rookie explained-generally- how things worked. She grinned at him afterwards and he half smiled back.

On the second day, he learned about Giles. And that wasn’t an official, “sit down and seriously discuss this teenage prick” type experience. In fact, it started with a commotion. Some police officer returned swearing his head off, and he mentioned “The Rupert punk”. 

A few people chuckled, some groaned, and one or two winced sympathetically. Of course, the new guy had no clue what was going on. He scooted over to the rookie from the day before, nudging her and shooting her a questioning look. Even she seemed to know what was going on, after all.

She raised an eyebrow but after a few seconds, she remembered. “Oh that’s right Levi, you’re not from around here are you?” She laughed, settling down and turning to him. Levi got the odd feeling he was in for a long story.

“Rupert Giles is the town _bad boy_. Except, you know, _super_ extra so. He breaks the law _all the time_ but no one is _ever_ able to arrest him. If I wasn’t into girls, I’d be all over him.” She paused, giving a soft sigh. “Like everyone else is. Can you say teen heartthrob? I wish he was more of a fake bad boy through, he gets into serious trouble. I heard he’s into some really weird stuff, too.”

She scooted closer, nudging Levi’s shoulder. _Ow. I don’t think you understand how strong you are, Kita._ He sighed, staring at Kita and waiting for her to continue, although she looked like she wanted some sort of prompting. After a few moments of awkward silence, Levi gave in and nodded. “Oh. Sounds… interesting?” He offered, which was enough for Kita to continue.

“Like magic or some shit, no one knows for sure. But the point is, he’s hot but dangerous. Keep your self away from him, hm? Unless he’s actually murdering someone, it’s usually best to just leave him be.

_’Actually murdering someone.’_ Had this Giles done that before? The thought was disconcerting, to say the least, that the police force was so calm about an active killer wandering around the streets and getting teenagers all hot and bothered. Levi nodded slowly, deciding it was probably a good time to get up and make some coffee.

He filed Giles away in the back of his head, although he didn’t come up for a while.

Third, forth, fifth and sixth days were not unusual in any way. Levi was told the basic layout. Desks in the main room, captain’s office to the side, one staircase leading downstairs to the holding cells. Paperwork was filled, calls were investigated, Levi chastised a few kids for minor misdemeanors. He talked to Kita some, or more was talked at by Kita, and went running every day before work. By the seventh day he was receiving shy glances from some of the girls at work, picked up his name in a few conversations shielded by hands. 

Levi wasn’t oblivious. He could tell when one of his coworkers started to flirt with him. In fact, he flirted with a few back. That seemed to lead to them being pleased and a few others looking jealous. 

Then again, it was apparent his popularity was practically nothing in comparison to his partner’s. Who, Levi would admit, wasn’t bad looking. She was tough as nails, for a start, lean muscles were her main claim to fame. She had clever eyes, easily tied back hair and was one of the best leaders Levi had met. 

One of the officers was racist to her once, calling her a name Levi would gladly never hear again. He stayed quiet around her now, and Levi would feel pleased when he saw the man shut up once she entered the room. The man had been terrible in accurate anyway, she was Japanese- not Chinese. Levi thought that made it more insulting, personally, but it was clear he wouldn’t repeat it.

Apart from Kita and Han, Levi also met O’Connor. Levi couldn’t say much about him, he was almost as quiet as Levi himself was. O’Connor loosened up around his partner though, and Levi thought the two in love but it turned out no, they were both happily married. Best friends with each other, though. _Loved each other, but aren’t in love with each other_. Almost sounded like something Shakespeare would write- when he wasn’t making a sex joke.

The first two weeks went by quickly, while they were fairly typical when moving to a new town that didn’t mean that they were entertaining. Levi started to learn about the outs and ins of the place, starting to slid into the fluid flow of his workplace, listening to the chatter that filled it up and how it died down around the end of the day. He knew who tended to stay late or skip out a bit early, knew what Han liked for lunch and how she took her coffee.

He learned that Kita, although still technically a rookie, took down a drug lord almost singlehandedly. Levi had learned this from Mark (who was a rather large gossip but in a very kind way, although he’d only spill when bribed with coffee or popcorn), and Kita had blushed then confirmed. She didn’t bring it up.

The town itself was a cross between being too small to be a city and too large to be an actual town. Not everyone knew each other but most knew about the more famous- or infamous- people. It had a few schools but not many; Levi couldn’t come up with a fixed name for what it was. He supposed it didn’t matter, and was usually too busy listening to Kita or Mark talk to think about it either.

It was two weeks and three days when things got interesting. Han had gotten sick, leaving the desk next to his empty, but Levi didn’t doubt she would have gone into work anyway if her boyfriend hadn’t stopped her. It was a flaw of her’s Levi liked, her dedication to the work. Even if her boyfriend was less appreciative, as sometimes Levi noted Han was missing dates she had mentioned earlier. 

Levi was on patrol by himself, driving around aimlessly in case he happened to pass a crime in process. Without Han to fill up the silence, it wasn’t very exciting. Levi didn’t particularly enjoy music, thought words were always more interesting to hear, so idle sounds of traffic and indistinct chatter from outside were the only sounds he heard.

Eyes scanning, back straight, Levi wasn’t slacking off. Perhaps he had a soft spot for being overly committed to work because he was himself. He didn’t have anyone to return home to, so it wasn’t terrible. Also, it paid off, because Levi caught a glance of something suspicious, a dark figure duck into an alleyway with a bag. Levi waited a few minutes before he turned into it, darkness quickly blanketing over him, then stopped his car and slipped out.

_Male, seventeen to twenty-two_ The young man, possibly boy, was painting something. At first Levi was tempted to shrug and go on his way… but when the light shined against the paint it certainly didn’t look normal. Too thick and inconsistent, a dark red colour that turned light when spread.

Blood.

Whoever he was, this boy was painting what appeared to be sigil in blood on the back of a public library. More so, he must have been completely transfixed in what he was doing, because he hadn’t noticed Levi. Or Levi’s car. Didn’t even flinch when Levi stepped closer, but his eyes widened when Levi pulled on his shoulder to question him.

The surprise lasted for half a second before the boy’s face melted into a scowl. Looking at him now, Levi narrowed his age assumption. Seventeen to twenty. “What the hell are you doing?”

To Levi’s surprise, it wasn’t him asking that question. “You interrupted it! Do you know how difficult this was to get?” The boy gestured to the blood, looking well and truly ticked off. “You _must_ be new if you’re part of the police, they know better then to interrupt me for something as simple as suspicious circumstances. The blood isn’t human, by the way. You must be Levi Thomason. Nice to meet you. Now, if you don’t mind, bugger off. I have to start over.”

There was silence after that, Levi taking in condescending tone and the words that were stuck in it. He raised an eyebrow, if this kid was pretending he didn’t get hassled that often by the police for things like this, he must be the Giles that had been mentioned. “Could be lying.” Levi pointed out, nodding at the blood. 

Giles smirked, crossing his arms and shifting most his weight to one foot. He was facing Levi completely now, looking very… not attractive. Under twenty one, not legal, not attractive. Looking very confident. _Confident_. “I could also be a moronic police officer who thinks just because he’s new he can _change_ things.” Ha. Clever mouth on him. 

Levi graciously accepted the challenge. “Or a smug kid who can’t lie properly.” He replied coolly, and Giles straightened up more. Tried not to look indignant, but did.

“Not worse then wanting to sleep with someone who’s underage.” He shot back, and Levi almost let himself look surprised because they had been talking for the entirety of forty seconds. It was more likely Giles just assumed everyone wanted to. 

Then again, it wasn’t exactly an unpleasant thought. And if one of them were the opposite sex Giles wouldn’t be underage. Law wasn’t written by beings of perfection, after all. Human error was bound to happen. “I don’t.”

Levi found Giles in his personal space, that smirk back in place, a hand on Levi’s chest and when had he been pushed back up against the hood of his car? Police should have better reflexes then this, but Giles didn’t seem as though he would actually try and fight. When Levi felt a lips against his throat he realized Giles most certainly wasn’t fighting. “Are you sure?” Levi barely registered the words, his mind scattering because _what the fuck was this kid thinking?_

Giles clearly didn’t care. In fact he took advantage of it; mouthing down Levi’s throat and pinning his wrists against the cool metal of the car. Keeping him in place while making his breathing shallower, harder to keep steady and unaffected. Almost impossible with Giles pressed up against him, in _public_ where anyone could just stumble upon them. 

It wasn’t helping that Giles knew how to work his tongue, or that he had teleported onto Levi’s lap. Levi hadn’t even realized that his wrists were free, just registering the feeling of Giles’ hands under his shirt, that _stupidly_ good mouth still working over his neck. 

_Really, this shouldn’t be illegal. The technical age of consent is sixteen; the fact that you’re both boys is a terrible reason for the age to be bumped up. And no one really cares._ Levi’s brain supplied, happy to forget that public sex itself as illegal as well. It made sense, and despite being an officer Levi joined to stop bad guys, not to follow the law to the letter. Some laws were ridiculous. Like the one saying he shouldn’t be kissing Giles back or rolling his hips up. Which he might be doing anyway.

The law wasn’t always right.

\- - - - - - - - - -

Levi called in early, going home with a migraine, and made himself some tea. Drank it and thought. Cooked dinner. Remembered and blushed.

They hadn’t ended up getting caught, but they did end up having some rather illegal and ~~very hot~~ sex. Then Giles had left, Levi had realized it was probably all to get out of being arrested and felt used. And maybe a bit satiated.

Throughout his self examination, Levi had discovered he felt distressingly not guilty. Ashamed. Even mildly regretful. Giles couldn’t have been more consenting if he tried, it was fun, they didn’t get caught and it was doubtful Giles had killed or hurt anyone to get the blood, even if it was human. The only thing Levi wasn’t happy with was that he’d encouraged the teen’s overconfidence. Seducing Levi in a few minutes, had to be at least a little bit of an ego boost. 

But one never knew with an ego that big.

Levi eventually just went to sleep, deciding to go into work tomorrow and forget about the whole thing entirely. The next day he got up, had some coffee, got dressed, and walked to work. When he got there, Mark walked up to Levi with his ‘I have news’ face. Really, it was a small smirk and a more confident walk. Levi raised an eyebrow, handing Mark a coffee. He accepted and then leaned against Levi’s desk. “The Rupert kid is in a cell.” Mark reported happily, taking a long sip of the coffee and shooting Levi a thankful nod.

_Great, I’m doomed._ Levi tilted his head, shooting Mark a confused look. He didn’t need much prompting to speak after the initial gift, so continued. “I know, we don’t really try that hard to arrest him in general because now and then he saves a few lives-“ _Wait, what?_ “-but he stole from a blood bank, dude. And left evidence! Who knows, we may actually hold him for the full twenty four hours this time.”

Levi let it sink in- if they had evidence, why only keep him for the twenty four hours? Why not convict him? What was this about ‘saving lives’? “Why?” He settled on asking, assuming Mark would eventually answer all his questions anyway.

But he just shrugged. “You got me, Thomason. I think they mostly do it as a time out, arresting him.” Mark replied, taking another mouthful off his coffee thoughtfully. “Or maybe all the girls just protest letting him leave.” He added, chuckling softly to himself and getting hit over the head by Han.

Levi sighed, turning back to his work, blocking out the friendly bickering that had arisen between his partner and Mark. Giles was here. In a cell. Where he couldn’t seduce Levi or run away. Thinking it over, it was actually a good opportunity. Levi stood up and walked towards the staircase, his footsteps echoing subtly as he went down it. He followed the hallway at the bottom of them, a sharp right turn introducing Levi to Rupert Giles, splayed over a cot and behind bars.

The look suited him.

Giles stirred, lifting the arm that was covering his eyes and starting at Levi for a few heartbeats. “Oh, it’s you.” He murmured, and Levi felt a flare of indignation. _You had sex with me on top of my car yesterday and all you can say is ‘oh it’s you’?_ “Hey there, sexy.” _Not what I meant._

Giles sat up, legs crossed beneath him and hands interlocked behind his neck. “If you let me out I’ll have dinner with you.” He said plainly, and then gave Levi a small grin.

_Smug prick. _“Somehow I doubt you’d be able to pay.” Levi responded, then leant back against the wall, flashing Giles a smirk of his own. In return, Giles let his hands drop and straightened up, looking pleased. The same way he did last time Levi returned a jab of his.__

__So of course, Levi expected some sort of smart remark back. He didn’t get one. Instead all Giles said was, “I will. And afterwards, I’ll show you something.” And he breathed it like a promise, like a dark secret, but Levi was unimpressed._ _

__“I think you’ve shown me quite a lot, actually.” At that, Giles laughed, relaxing back with amusement written across his face. It was a whiplash of a transition, considering he’d looked so serious only moments before, but a nice one. Giles’ laugh wasn’t biting, it was soft and deep._ _

__Seemed a bit too old for him, a bit too underused. But a rebel like Giles, he’d be laughing all the time, right? Levi dismissed the thought as Giles spoke again. “Not the best parts.” He teased, even accompanying it with a wink and a smile. “Come to dinner with me.” Giles repeated, and this time Levi didn’t immediately reject the idea._ _

__“Why?” He questioned instead, although Giles misunderstood the meaning._ _

__He shrugged. “Free meal, and something interesting afterwards.” Giles said, looking at Levi expectantly. For him to say yes, obviously, because who wouldn’t want to go out with the community bad boy, who paints of concrete walls with blood and tempts people of all ages?_ _

__Levi rolled his eyes, kicking off the wall in a fluid motion and taking a few steps closer. “Why ask me out?” He clarified._ _

__And got another laugh for his efforts. Levi was starting to think that this wasn’t worth it, that he should just leave and arrest Giles sometime in the future and make him stay in here for as long as possible. “You didn’t come to gloat.” Giles stated._ _

__Which was… unexpected. Made Rupert sound younger, just for that moment. “Do most people?”_ _

__Rupert nodded, then smiled. “You didn’t. Not to say you didn’t have a few sassy comebacks when I teased you.” His smile grew, and then it disappeared and he shrugged noncommittally. “I like you. You tried to arrest me.”_ _

__“And then you slept with me in an alley way.”_ _

__“On top of your car, I remember.”_ _

__Levi gave a snort of amusement, shaking his head. _There is a very real, large chance that I’m going to regret this_ He turned on his heel and left, walking out silently._ _

__Giles gave a disappointed huff, lying back on the bed. It was possible he shouldn’t have added ‘I remember’, that may have been a bit too… rude? Condescending? There was something about dating that always annoyed Giles. It was the whole reveal yourself slowly, act like a different person when you first meet. Something about spacing the crazy._ _

__He didn’t like it. Why date someone if you know they’re faking most of the time? Why get in the habit of lying to them, and expecting trust to form between you from it? Then again, perhaps meeting someone via painting a magic sigil in human blood on the wall of a library wasn’t the… best of introductions. There’s a difference between lying and seeing someone in a different light._ _

__At least not seeing someone in a bad, vaguely murderous and almost definitely mental light. Maybe there was something to this whole ‘constantly lying’ thing after all._ _

__Levi walked back in, twirling a ring on keys on his finger and sporting a smug smile. Giles stood up, suppressing his look of disbelief, which didn’t appear to quite work because Levi tilted his head for a moment, a nonverbal ‘may as well’, before he unlocked the door. His free hand stayed on the bar just above the lock, keeping the door closed. When Giles moved his gaze to send Levi a questioning look, their eyes met._ _

__In a lot of stories and songs, the eyes are called the windows to the soul. Really, the eyes themselves are capable of expressing almost nothing about a person. Pupils dilated can mean attraction. Change in size can mean anger or pain, but they don’t say much about the person. Just indicate some of their immediate emotions. That’s not to say eyes aren’t transfixing, various colours weaved into them and the undeniable black that is the center._ _

__So while the eyes might not technically reveal anything, it was either the symbolism built up through stories or the woven intricacies of colour that had Rupert and Levi stare at each other few a few heartbeats, and it was Levi who technically broke it by opening the door, which made Rupert’s gaze swivel to it before he stepped out._ _

__Rupert grinned, stretching out his arms (and hiking up his shirt) then letting out a large, content sigh. “Ah, freedom. At least until you kidnap me, yeah?” He sent Levi a wink, chuckling to himself. “It’s not like I could call the cops on you.”_ _

__Levi rolled his eyes, nodding to the hallway. He assumed Rupert would have learned his way around this place by now, he could show himself out. “Where do you live?” If they were going on a date, seemed helpful for Levi to know where he could pick Rupert up._ _

__But, of course, the man just waved his hand dismissively and turned away. “Don’t worry, officer, I’ll pick you up.”_ _

__It wasn’t until after Rupert had left that Levi realized he hadn’t told the man his address, either._ _

____

\- - - - - - - - - -

Levi had half expected to have gotten picked up that night, have Giles randomly appear at his door, smug grin and car keys in tow then get pulled off to some quick, cheap restaurant where Giles could seduce out the back again.

But he went home, busied himself, and before he knew it Levi was scrambling to cook a late dinner. It would have been helpful if they had named a date, at least. Tomorrow the same thing happened, and the day after Levi didn’t bother to put off dinner, just ate at a normal time. It wasn’t terribly unlikely Giles just used him to get out of jail, played him as easily as he had the first time they met. The thought was disappointing, because Giles was intriguing. 

Not that he felt like that when Levi walked out of the police building and saw Giles leaning up against the wall, a flower in hand. Some sort of flower, Levi didn’t recognize it. He accepted it when Giles offered it to him, though, looking over the flower with interest. _Not predictable, I’ll give him that_. “Thought you had forgotten me.” Levi commented, glancing up from the blue gift to meet Giles’ gaze.

He grinned, shrugging uncaringly then taking a step closer, teasing smile in place along with half lidded eyes. “Now, _how_ in the world could I forget you?” He asked, and when met with no reply but a raised eyebrow he paid it no mind, continuing on. “Hot, chocolate skinned officer fucks me on his police car in an alleyway, then releases me from jail on just the vague promise of a date? Not the type of man easily forgotten, monosyllabic as he may be.”

Levi cracked a smile, shooting Rupert a look of mock disappointment. “I thought you were avoiding clichés.” He commented, glancing back down at the not-rose. After a brief, incredulous pause Rupert laughed.

“Caramel any better?” He offered, and Levi considered before shaking his head. _Almost more common, that one_. Rupert sighed and threw his hands in the air. “I give up! You’re impossible to compliment. Too picky.” He declared.

Levi smiled. Again. He pulled a face of false sympathy. “Bar was set high with the flower.” Levi murmured sadly, patting Rupert on the shoulder. When Rupert seized the opportunity to step closer and kiss Levi, he wasn’t expecting it and took a solid five seconds to process before pushing Rupert back with a chuckle. “Down Tiger.” He scolded, voice teasing, and Rupert responded with an eye roll.

“Sleep with you on a car, and it’s the kiss in front of the police station that gives you pause.” He complained. It earned him a thoroughly demeaning hair ruffle- he wasn’t twelve, for goodness sakes. 

Levi tucked the flower into his shirt pocket, not knowing that specific shade of blue made his skin and eyes stand out more. After all, Levi wasn’t the one looking at it. “Other’s could see.” Which Rupert didn’t think was that good of an excuse.

He closed the space between them again, this time only wrapping his arms around Levi’s neck and standing up taller. “Good. Let’s have people talk about us.” He murmured, not having to speak very loud because of how close they were, the softness of Rupert’s voice making Levi’s spine tingle pleasantly. 

He hadn’t noticed until now, but Rupert… had a good voice. Not silk, it didn’t exactly slide out, more like velvet. Soft. Even so, his words themselves weren’t the best. Levi scowled, looking down at Giles seriously for a moment. “Giles.” He scolded, missing the teasing note from last time.

Giles smiled softly, settling back onto his heels and letting go. He took a step back, allowing Levi to have his personal space back. “Got you to say my name.” He pointed out, raising his shoulders innocently, looking as though he was expecting some sort of backlash but was trying to cute his way out of it. Giles. The seventeen to twenty year old, rebellious, wiccan-punk style Giles.

The sheer ridiculousness of it made Levi roll his eyes and drop the subject, if they ended up going on another date he could tell Rupert about how not acting like that in public was probably a safer bet. “Where are we going?” He asked instead, pretending not to notice Rupert’s pleased and partially relieved smile.

But Rupert jumped on the conversation change quickly, hand wrapping around Levi’s as he started to walk, taking Levi along with him. “It’s s surprise. And do you _ever_ say more then one sentence at a time, mate?” Not that Rupert really minded, it have him more time to talk and Levi seemed more then content to listen.

Levi kept pace, walking next to Rupert and deciding against letting go of his hand. It was a bit late, not many people were out and if they were, well, it’s not as though they’d be paying attention to two guys on the pavement. “Sometimes.”

“You’re not going to go one worded on me too, are you? I’m not sure I can hold a conversation with one word replies.”

“Maybe.” Levi failed to suppress a small smile when he heard Rupert’s groan of irritation, and maybe when he nudged Rupert with his shoulder it was more good-naturedly then he intended. It’s not as though Rupert would tell, he couldn’t know what Levi had been intending. Probably. “Maybe not.” Levi added, seeing Rupert glance over to him and grin in the corner of his vision.

\- - - - - - - - - -

“Now that wasn’t so terrible, was it?” Rupert asked, hand in Levi’s hair, holding his head back just slightly. He was pressed up against a bed, Levi’s bed actually, and grinning wickedly. Clearly he wasn’t going to let Levi continue until he responded.

Pinned to a mattress and still being in control, the prick. Levi tried to move forward to connect their lips again but only succeeded in earning a sharp tug to his hair. Rupert was eighteen for fuck’s sake, yet there was no arguing with who was more dominant between the two. Even if Levi had a fairly strong controlling streak himself. 

Levi rolled his eyes, running a finger up Rupert’s throat, up to just under his chin then swiping a thumb across his lips. “Not the last part.” He murmured, and then hand in his hair slackened and their lips met, sliding open easily. They weren’t very learned in each other, but they had gotten kissing down well. Not that it wasn’t awkward at first, as all out-of-the-heat-of-the-moment kisses are, but practice made… well, better.

Rupert pushed him back after a few moments, and Levi let himself get moved until he was lying on his back neck to a Rupert who had turned onto his side, eyes on Levi. “Are you saying the date was? That was an expensive disappointment, then. You’re not cheap.” Rupert practically deflated, shoulders going slack and Levi was sure he’d seen that expression on an upset puppy. Pity Rupert didn’t have ears to droop.

He hummed noncommittally, closing his eyes and crossing his arms behind his back, enjoying the soft gasp that came from Rupert. With the lamp on, he was given a softly lit view of Levi’s torso. The alley had been dark and after the date there’d been fumbling in the living room and clothes only left after they’d fallen into bed, too wrapped up in sensation to bother to flick the lights on. 

Levi had turned on his reading lamp afterwards, running his fingertips down Rupert’s pale spine, inspecting the previously unseen tattoos that were inked into his back. They all looked like symbols of some sort, Levi was starting to get the feeling Rupert may have been a wiccan. Or something. He didn’t particularly care, Rupert was just some fun.

Some snarky, rude fun that was likely to get both of them in trouble. Often.

Levi’s train of thought was interrupted when he felt a hand on his chest, fingers spread and ghosting over skin. He opened up an eye, looking over to Rupert curiously. He was ignoring Levi’s face, studying his torso with rapt attention. It was a bit flattering, actually, if not slightly odd. Levi knew he was fit- had to be, if he wanted to be a good cop. But the level one looks at, goes _dang_ in their head, then moves on. Not that catches and holds attention. “These are prison tattoos.” Rupert said, cutting through the brief silence.

Well, yeah. Levi didn’t make it a secret he used to be a bit of a troublemaker, but that hadn’t ended well. It hadn’t exactly come up in conversation though. “So?” He asked, not seeing the important of them. There were plenty of people in the world with prison tats. 

Rupert grinned, ducking down and tracing one of the more basic tattoos with his tongue. “Means you used to be a _bad boy_.” He purred, eyes flashing up to meet Levi’s. Rupert shivered, slinking up Levi’s body until he was half lying on top of him, lips barely apart. “You had fun once. And the world didn’t end.” He teased, rolling off Levi and chuckling.

Of course. Levi rolled his eyes over to Rupert, looking him up and down. “True.” He agreed, although really he had rather just finished having fun. Twice. It was the reason he was being so docile, he was content and a bit tired from it. Plus it was getting late, and Levi wasn’t quite the night owl Rupert was. 

“I like the idea of you in jail.” Rupert added, getting a raised eyebrow from Levi. Levi, in turn, got a pillow to the face from Rupert. He grinned, but schooled his expression before moving the pillow. “Not what I meant. _Past_ you. It’s hot.” Rupert clarified, scooting against Levi and smiling when an arm was draped across his waist.

He’d just been given permission to stay for the night.

“You would think so.” Levi muttered, not able to fit the accusing tone he’d been aiming for into his voice and it came out more… playfully insulting. Levi was almost pleased it’d happened, except he was also confused. Disappointed. He ignored the emotions surrounding his manner; it was a small and stupid thing to worry about anyway.

Rupert tuned and nuzzled into Levi’s neck, nipping at a dark hickey that had been left there. By someone. Who knew whom? “I do. Because it is. Example A, me. In jail a lot, and people find me hot. Now, although it is also glorious, I somehow doubt that’s because of my shining personality. Might be. What do you think? Reputation or personality?”

Levi didn’t even bother to roll his eyes this time, just shut them and then shook his head in slight disbelief. How in the world did he enjoy the company of this talkative, destructive, and ridiculous bundle of energy? “Eyeliner.” He replied, turning on his side and pulling Rupert closer, entangling their legs and shutting his eyes. “Now sleep.”

Deciding to question Levi about his odd response later, Rupert settled down as to not disturb him. “Why? Have to get up early for work tomorrow?” He teased, surprised to be met with a small head shake in reply.

“Nope; tired. Go to sleep, Giles.” Levi breathed, sentences separated by a yawn. Rupert may have shivered when the warm air played over his skin, but he stilled soon enough that it was _possible_ Levi didn’t notice. 

Of course Levi did notice, but it didn’t matter, because Rupert complied and fell asleep within a few minutes of being told to.


	3. Chapter 3

“Am I getting another date from this?” Levi asked, earning a grin from Rupert. Who, of course, hadn’t bothered to open his eyes yet. He laid on the small cot, hands behind his head, and shrugged.

“Depends, officer. Are you letting me out?” Rupert asked, raising an eyebrow. Still with his eyelids shut. Smug punk.

Levi hummed in thought, walking over and letting his fingers run over the bars, creating tapping sounds that somehow prompted Rupert to finally look at Levi, head tilted in curiousity. Levi chuckled, resting his forearm over his head on the bars, shooting Rupert a confident smirk. “I don’t know. You’ve been a bad boy, Giles.” He said.

Rupert wrinkled his nose. “Ew. No.” He replied instantly, ignoring Levi’s uncaring shrug and hopping to his feet before walking over to the cell door, looking terribly expectant. “C’mon, she’s not dead. Or even in the hospital!” He pushed, actively looking offended that he was being kept in a cell.

“True...” Levi conceded, but sent Rupert had rather assaulted her. Well, the woman said Rupert had actually saved her, but she also said Rupert had saved her from a monster so the police weren’t putting much credit to what she was saying.

The fact remained that Rupert’s knuckles were bruised and the woman had defensive wounds. But because both denied Rupert had purposely hurt her, the police couldn’t really keep him locked up anyway. “Fine.”

Levi unlocked the door, immediately welcomed with an armful of Rupert Giles. Lovely. And out in public, again. “Gi-” He started, but was cut off with a pair of lips pressed against his own. Levi kissed back reflexively then pushed Rupert back, glancing over to the corridor and sighing with relief when there was no one there.

He turned his attention back to Giles, scowling. “Stop doing that.” He instructed. 

Rupert widened his eyes innocently, placing his hand over his heart. “Can’t I show affection to the person I’m dating?” He asked, trying to sound hurt but missing by a long shot.

Levi rolled his eyes. “Once.” He corrected, then shook that train of thought off. It wasn’t important, that distinction. “Not in public.” Levi said, stepping back for a showing of how they should keep their distance. 

“It’s not illegal. Just, you know, looked down upon and seen as unholy.” Rupert offered, giving a half reassuring smile that Levi didn’t buy. “Hey, we’re in a police station. You’re a sexy officer guy. Hate crime won’t fly here, yeah?”

Technically, Rupert had a point. But there were a few people who would make Levi’s life much harder than it had to be if they came down at the wrong moment. And a few who would blush and try to subtly give Levi a thumbs up before rushing away, bubbling with the need to tell someone what they had just seen. (Well, two.)

Levi pulled Rupert into a chaste kiss then pushed him away in the direction of the stares, pleased with the surprised blush he had gotten from Rupert. Then that cocky, lopsided grin returned and Rupert waved goodbye before disappearing up the steps.

\----

“Ripper has a boyfriend.” Ethan announced, immediately gaining the attention of the two other men as Rupert rolled his eyes and let his head fall back again, blowing out a puff of smoke.

“That true?” Randall asked, attention moved jointly to Rupert now.

Rupert, for his part, shrugged nonchalantly and took another deep breath, giggling lightly as he let it out. “How do you think all my little trips to the jail have been so short?” He asked, question aimed at the ceiling. 

Ethan grinned and sat down next to Rupert, stealing his joint and taking a long breath in before blowing the smoke in Rupert’s face. “Does this mean we have to stop having sex?” He teased, and Randall wrinkled his nose.

“Did we agree that you guys wouldn’t mention that?” He asked, but went largely ignored. It could be hard being one of the few straight people in a group.

Rupert closed his eyes, sighing lightly and holding out his pointer and middle finger. Ethan sweetly returned his joint, and Rupert took another drag in thought. “Nah.” He decreed, smoke escaping from his mouth as he talked, and Ethan overly excitedly clasped his hands together, a large smile plastered on his face.

“Oh joyful day! I will have more than just the memories of you whimpering underneath me for a while still to come!” Ethan exclaimed.

Rupert just smirked, sending Ethan a knowing glance. He could pretend all he liked that he was the more dominant one, that wouldn’t make it actually true. But Rupert didn’t care enough to correct him, let the boys think he was secretly all submissive and desperate, didn’t matter. It’s not as though he was planning on sleeping with them anyway, so they didn’t have a reason to know the truth.

“ _Guys._ ” Randall tried again, shooting a look to Thomas for help. Thomas raised up his hands, not wanting to get involved. He’d been down that path before. Didn’t end well.

Randall threw his hands in the air, giving an annoyed huff and plopping onto the ground, holding out his hand to Rupert. “I’m not high enough for this shit. And _don’t_ give me the joint you two have been sharing, I’d prefer not to de-facto snog you both-”

“Just one of us, then?” Ethan asked, and Rupert chuckled.

“-shut up. Just give me my own.”

And soon Randall found himself with his own joint, conversation turning to a party that Thomas had been thinking of crashing while they all smoked and teased each other.

\----

Levi sighed, sending Rupert another glare. He really didn’t have to show up at the police station when he wasn’t getting arrested, Rupert wasn’t exactly subtle about his sexuality and while the sanction was fairly liberal, there were still a few who… weren’t. Rupert was busy flirting with Mark so he didn’t notice the annoyed looks that were being sent his way.

Honestly, Levi wasn’t in the mood to deal with surprises. There was some sort of serial killer on the loose who had appeared to outrun a car, and Levi was exhausted from giving chase.

Han- one of the few who did know about Levi and Rupert- noticed Levi’s looks. She joined Levi in the exciting task of learning against the desk and watching Rupert and Mark. “Rumor has it Mark has a thing with Clara, you know.” She commented offhandedly. 

Levi was in the middle of contemplating why every officer seemed to be dead set on gossiping about everything, but that train of thought was interrupted when he realized that Han was trying to make him feel better. She thought Levi was jealous, or possibly just rather possessive over Rupert. But Rupert flirted with everyone, and not particularly seriously. Despite the ‘bad boy’ reputation that clung to him, Rupert didn’t seem like the type to cheat. Levi didn’t mind that he flirted as long as Rupert didn’t end up fucking anyone else against a car.

Levi was just annoyed that Rupert had simply show up, no warning involved. Although… he may be forgiven. Depending on what the gift he had gotten Levi was. Speaking of, Levi picked it up off his desk, turning it over in his hands and resisting the urge to shake it. He should let Han stop worrying about Levi’s pride here, though. “Mark’s too good for him, anyway.” Levi smiled softly when Rupert glanced over and shot him a wide grin, slipping the present into his inner coat pocket. Only one it would fit in. Rupert returned his attention to Mark, and Levi gave his back to Han.

Who, actually, was looking at him thoughtfully. Levi glanced to the side then back to Han before raising an eyebrow, although Han stayed silent for a while. In her eyes, Rupert was an excitable troublemaker- overly flirtatious and disrespectful of both authority and rules. Levi, on the other hand, was hardworking and loyal, if not rather monosyllabic. It didn’t make sense that the two were together, at all. “And you’re not?” She asked, tone a more than a little disbelieving. 

Levi turned his head from Han to Rupert, watching him. He was laughing and would end some sentences with winks, visibly responded to everything Mark was saying with interest. And Mark, well, most people usually weren’t keen on his gossip. Unless it was about reasons behind case assignments, new people, or who fancied who. He always had a pleased air about him when talking about those, too, but at the moment he was ecstatic and animated, happy to find someone happily willing to listen to the rest of it- even if they didn’t actually work at the precinct. 

“No.” Levi shook his head, one end up his lips curling upwards minutely, then his gaze fell to the floor. He schooled his expression and looked back over to Han, meeting her eyes evenly. “No, I’m really not.”

Han kept the stare for a while, then she smiled and nodded. Taking that as acceptance and an end to the conversation, Levi pushed himself off his desk, the motion catching Rupert’s eye. Politely, he excused himself from the discussion with Mark, promising to come back sometime soon. Rupert met Levi over by the wall, both of them out of the way while the other officers moved about- actually doing their job. “If you got me chocolates I’m breaking up with you.” Levi stated simply.

Rupert chuckled and tapped the outline of the box through Levi’s coat, glancing up at him. “C’mon, Tommy, you know I avoid clichés.” He murmured, and Levi raised an eyebrow then gave a light scoff. 

“Tommy?” How does one even get ‘Tommy’ from Le- oh. 

Levi rolled his eyes, annoyed he hadn’t made the connection earlier as Rupert said, “Thompson. Last name. You remember you have one of those, right?” He grinned in amusement, then leant up to kiss Levi; who put a hand on his chest to push him back down. Their relationship wasn’t exactly a secret, friends knew, but there were enough prejudiced people in the force that Levi wasn’t open about it. 

So, you know, a good rule of thumb was no snogging in public. Which he had told Rupert before.

Rupert, of course, understood that- but he forgot sometimes. All it took was a gentle reminder and he’d switch back to ‘suspiciously close friends’ mode. Although, being the absurdly greedy man he was, it did irk Rupert that he had been denied a kiss. Which usually lead to him suggesting, “Perhaps you should take me home.”

Rupert shifted back, out of Levi’s personal space, and added, “For safety reasons, of course. It’s very dangerous out there, at this time of… midday.” His lips formed into a line, silently admitting he’d done better as far as excuses go. And he really had. “You know, I think there’s some dude following me. I’m worried about it Tomm-” Rupert cleared his throat. “Officer Thompson. Could you walk me home?” He grinned. It was an improvement, at least.

Levi rolled his eyes, looking around until he caught Han’s eyes and nodded to the door. Han made a shooing motion with her hand, also sending Levi a wink for good measure. Now with what almost counted as permission, Levi left with Rupert; to guide him home. For safety reasons. They had walked a while (Levi had no clue where they were or how close to Rupert’s house he was, had never been before) when Rupert stopped walking. Levi slowed then also stopped before turning around, tilting his head in hopes of an explanation. “We can’t go back to my flat.” Rupert admitted.

Levi raised an eyebrow, glancing at the way they were going before back to Rupert. The two of them had been walking for long enough Levi wasn’t entirely keen on going anywhere else. “Yours?” Rupert asked, then turned and started walking in the opposite direction. Levi sighed; his house was back the way they had come and then past the police station. It was only a ten minutes walk from there, but from here it’d take longer. Hadn’t been a nice day either. 

But Rupert was clearly nervous. Well, no- okay. Correction: his was calm looking and seemingly at ease but Levi had slept with him enough times to know when he was secretly anxious about something. So instead of arguing Levi just sighed, and went to go follow Rupert.

He was pretty sure he’d see Rupert’s house eventually, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it is not forgotten just being worked on realllllly slowly


	4. Not-quite-magic

It had been two months and five days since Rupert had met Levi. Of course, Levi would know the hours and minutes and who knows maybe even an approximate of the seconds too, considering it was on police record.

Although, knowing Levi, he’d know but not say. 

He knew a lot of things he didn’t say.

And frankly, it was a bit worrying.

Not _incredibly_ worrying or anything. And it’s not as though it hadn’t been a fun two months and five days (and fifteen hours, thirty-two minutes and oh, about twenty or so seconds). It had been fun.

Really fun.

Thinking about it, Rupert should really go to Levi’s house tonight. Offer to make dinner. Invite himself in for tea. Bring chocolate. The melty sort of chocolate that turned half into a liquid after about two seconds on hot, dark skin that Rupert could just lap u-

_Wow, okay, not the point. I’m worrying- ish- about Levi’s tendency to be extremely secretive._

Not actively secretive, of course, or maybe actively secretive but just really good at hiding it. But he was a police officer _and_ friends with Kita and Mark. He had to know much more than he was letting on. 

From what Rupert had seen, Levi believed he was just a normal rebellious punk- which he was, in a lot of ways. In some quitting university and denying his magical fate to sleep around, save lives, and sleep with some unbelievably attractive people.

Oh, and too sleep with Ethan too, he supposed.

But Kita and Mark dealt in rumors, hell Rupert was half convinced that they were some reincarnated demons of gossip. ...actually, that could be a thing. _Mental note, find out if there are demons of gossip and if they could be reincarnated into overly cheery people._

Anyway, it seemed as though Levi’s best friends (apart from Han, of course, who put little stock in rumor) loved nothing more than to walk up to Levi and openly up a lovely conversation with, “So guess what _I_ heard!”

Rupert wasn’t an idiot, despite what many people thought. He knew that he wasn’t exactly subtle with saving people from monsters nor with using magic, and never really stuck around long enough to convince the survivors to keep quiet. So there was tons of rumors surrounding him- devil, god, angel, murderer, and most often, sorcerer. 

Which, you know, was true. 

Rupert would be much more comfortable if Levi had actually questioned him about any of it. He hadn’t brought up the blood sigil (how they met was such a romantic memory) nor Rupert’s track record, either. Levi seemed content with knowing that Rupert was a sketchy bloke, and he left that as it was.

Levi was a logical man, of course- he was a bow street runner, he had to be. Still, there were so many blanks left in reports, so many witnesses or would swear something supernatural went down- Levi was rational, but he was smart enough to realize when there was enough evidence for something that he had to bend his beliefs a bit.

And yet- nothing! Levi hadn’t asked about any of it, and they’d… hung out… a good amount of times already. 

Of course, seeing each other more than once a week was really more of a recent thing. The first month they only saw each other three times.

But then that was that fourth time, and things had changed a little bit.

 

 

It hadn’t started out particularly exciting- more daring than Levi had allowed so far, but nothing really in the eyes of Rupert. They’d been smoking in an alley (and into each other’s mouths) for a while, and had drinks beforehand.

Basically, they were giggly and rather uninhibited. 

Levi laughed and held onto Rupert for support instead of leaning against the wall, Rupert kissed Levi deeply in the open and didn’t get chastised for it, and the only sounds they could hear were breathing and the rustling of fabric- as well as voices that weren’t quite as hushed as they thought encompassing the two of them in a slow swirl of sound.

Levi was letting a trail of smoke, clear as it rose up into the biting air before getting torn apart by the warmth starved particles, when he head footsteps.

Not click-click, don’t mind me I’m just walking by taps of the feet. Heavy, large falls of thick boots that screamed they had something to say, that whoever wore them was definitely talking to you.

Rupert heard them as well and subsequently stopped moving his lips against Levi’s neck, copying the air around them by freezing. 

This wasn’t like getting caught fooling around with some guy outside a club, Levi was a cherry topper and Rupert was underage. It could end very, very badly.

Rupert pulled back just a blade’s depth over the exact distance needed to lock his eyes with Levi’s, who appeared to be remarkably calm given his current situation. Levi’s held Rupert's gaze for a while, both getting a small scrap of relief because the other knew what had just happened, then gave a sidelong glance to the sound of the feet.

It stopped just a meter away from them, probably worried any closer and the owner of those remarkably aggressive shoes and would get contaminated by the gay.

“Queers!” Came the call, and really it was terribly uncreative. Sure, it was a slur, but it was also sort of… a fact.

On par with calling someone human-- except said with a large amount of malicious intent as if ‘human’ had a demeaning history behind it that, all in all, made calling someone such a word incredibly rude.

Moreover, Mr. Big Foot had ruined the mood. Rupert had been allowed to actually get within ten centimeters of Levi outside of the bedroom, and then some bigoted, fashion impaired brute had come along and just stopped that.

Really, Rupert would have quite liked to throw some sort of spell that would knock him unconscious-- he’d done it enough times when caught with Ethan-- but then there would be a lot of awkward questions asked on Levi’s part. And Rupert could barely managed to convince two thirds of most people who’d seen him use magic that magic had, in fact, not been what they’d seen, but instead it was a trick of the light.

So his chance of tricking a trained for that sort of thing cop? Low. 

He may be a bit drunk, but then so was Rupert, and Levi also had the extra advantage of being able to tell when Rupert was ill at ease. 

That plan wouldn’t work. Rupert clenched his jaw and closed his eyes, leaning up to kiss Levi’s jaw.

Who, understandably, sent him a glare. They were about to get possibly beat up for being queer as Rupert’s reaction was to continue the makeout session? Not a good plan, on paper. Or in practice. 

“Oi, I’m talking to you, fags!” 

Well, for lack of a better way to put it, _duh_. Rupert leaned up and brushed his lips over Levi’s ear. “I’ll go low, you go high.” He whispered, then pressed his lips against Levi’s and suddenly the whole plan made much more sense than it had before.

Levi rested a hand on Rupert’s shoulder, tugging him so he was pressed against Levi’s chest, and Rupert let his arm rest over Levi’s head. Casual motions, nothing that would cause suspicion. The only thing it pointed to was them being hard of hearing and very captivated with each other.

There was the thud of another step. A drag that implied a small limp, then another thud that sounded more from the left. 

_Right leg injured._ At that point, they both knew what was going to happen. The only one who didn’t was Sir Shoes, at really it was his own fault for not cluing in. Or concealing his limp. Or doing anything other than assuming to seemingly gay men would would be easily intimidated and good at hearing.

 

Shoes was closer. Another slide of his hurt foot, placing it in front, and Levi shoved Rupert away as Rupert pushed himself off the way, dropping down with his weight on one leg. He spun, a bit before Levi did, and hit the back of Shoes’ injured leg.

Shoe started his fall backwards, at which point Levi’s elbow connected with the back of his head. He blacked out instantly, and Rupert caught Shoes before he fell to the ground and his his head another time.

That could cause a concussion, after all, and Rupert got the feeling Levi would appreciate Shoes getting hurt as little as possible. Rupert eased him down, letting the man settle on his side, then stood up.

 

Not a long fight, nor particularly exciting, but most fights weren’t. Levi sighed heavily and leant against the wall, despite Rupert being close by and having a nice body to rest against for support.

“Hey, it’s not like he can identify us.” They had been far too busy snogging for Shoes to have seen their faces.

Levi shot Rupert a glare, who gave a half shrug in return. “I don’t like hurting people, Rup.” Understandable, and Shoes had been an unarmed civilian. 

Rupert’s breath left him in soft huff, parting- with annoyance- from his lungs. He strode to Levi, back straight. “Was that man, in fact, clearly showing signs of aggression?” Rupert asked, glad one of his side classes from Uni could prove useful.

“Yes, but-” 

“With obvious intent to assault us?”

Levi’s head slumped with understanding, and his eyes fell to the bottom corner of his vision. “Yes.”

“Then were we not simply employing some preemptive self defense?”

Silence followed, wherein Levi acknowledged Rupert’s point and bit the inside of his cheek. Pointing out that “preemptive self defense” was not actually a _thing_ would be pointless, as well as ineloquent (“thing” was such an undescriptive word) so after a while he gave a short nod.

“Great. Be free of guilt, Tommy! And go back to kissing me.” Rupert stepped closer, breathing out the last sentence and letting his eyes shut halfway. 

“Rupert.”

It was that voice again. That “I am very near done dealing with you avoiding the issue” voice that had led to Levi making a move to leave a few times which meant Rupert had to drop his pride for a little bit and stop him, which was just entirely unpleasant. Better to deal with it now.

Rupert let his forehead fall onto Levi’s shoulder, but then stepped back and did his best to look attentive. He also tried to be attentive, and learned it was hard to do both at the same time.

“Violence isn’t good.” Levi stated, and Rupert gave a short nod to show he understood and absorbed the information.

“I know.”

There was a pause, where Levi studied Rupert carefully. “You don’t care.”

Rupert gave a lopsided grin and raised his shoulders. “No, not particularly. I do lots of things that aren’t good, violence is just one of them.” He admitted, but then returned his shoulders to normal and schooled his expression into a more neutral, but relatively genuine one. “I can cut back though. Not much, but I can.”

“For me?”

“Think of it as an early christmas present.”

Levi tilted his head in consideration, then a soft smile tugged at the edge of his lips. “Alright.” He agreed, kicking off the wall and placing a kiss on Rupert’s cheek. “Odd present.” Levi added, voice a murmur, and Rupert’s face parted into a large grin.

“Gotta avoid cliches somehow, you know. Come along, fuddy-duddy, before you remember you have to propose because you slept with me.” Rupert teased, and he started to walk off.

Levi raised an eyebrow, he was rather used to Rupert’s teasing but it was unusual for him to give a grand exit before he gave Levi a chance to retort. “On my way.” Levi assured, jogging to catch up with Rupert, then deciding to pass him completely. 

“Active duty.” He teased while brushing past, and Rupert’s surprised laugh was cut off when he started to give chase.

“Rude! That’s how we met, remember?” Rupert called, but Levi pretended to ignore him and they both ran until Levi ducked into his house, soon joined by a cold-skinned Rupert who was rapidly warming up, and had apparently decided neither of them needed clothes to help defrost from the chill of outside.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> new chapter, who's cool, im cool, hell yeah, im singing this in my head, oh yeah, im cool, hell yeah
> 
> no but i am proud of myself for churning out another one relatively quickly


End file.
